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Science Matters

With summertime rapidly approaching, Virginians are bracing for those days of the year that kind of feel like we’re living inside of someone’s mouth, hot, sticky, and socially uncomfortable. So why do muggy days feel the way they do and what can we expect this summer?

Health problems continue to be a major issue for the human species. Every year hundreds of millions of people are diagnosed with conditions that either impact quality of life or lead to more grim situations. Our health is easily the most important aspect of our lives and any new research on this topic is very closely studied, scrutinized, and distributed for public awareness. So, when a remarkable find in the medical community happens, we take it upon ourselves to let you know!

Gummie vitamins have become a popular way to get a good dose of nutrients each day. It’s a routine many of us don’t give much thought to, but a lot of science goes into that little bite: everything from its color to its digestibility was studied and perfected in a lab. Check out three “Hot Shots and Hot Jobs” involved in the development and design of gummie vitamins: Product Design Scientist, Confection Technologist, and Analytical Chemist.

As our environmental conditions change, so must the way we approach certain aspects of life. Agriculture and its annual yield have a lot to do with the weather. As climate changes, these impacts can be felt by everyone in the region, from the farmers themselves to what we're seeing on the shelves at grocery stores. How can we make farms more resilient? Listen to this Question Your World radio report produced by the Science Museum of Virginia to learn more.

Parents of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often are frustrated, confused and scared. Healthcare professionals who treat ASD patients are also challenged. Peter Mazure is both. He is the father of a 28-year-old who suffers from ASD and also is a retired clinical psychologist.

“I understand why parents are the way they are. This isn’t just a clinical issue. It’s a personal issue,” he said.

For science, sometimes big discoveries are sitting there right in front of us just waiting to be found. This has caused some strange discoveries in our timeline of exploration and understanding. For example as weird as it may seem, the planet Uranus was discovered long before Antarctica, even though Antarctica has been right here on Earth this whole time. It was only a couple of years ago that we understood that four species of giraffes have been walking Africa the whole time we’ve been on Earth.